jikan_rpg | [Closed] Oh, let the bullets fly, oh, let them rain

[oH GOD HE WAS RIGHT THERE??]

[Hold on she's]

[She hasn't gone to the baths yet today?? And her hair is a mess and and she's so frazzled and--]

[And despite all of that, rather than answer, she comes to open the door to the dorm building.]

...h-h-hello, Sempai! G-Good to see you! I hope you weren't waiting too long!

C... come in?

[Oh boy. The sparkles, the love bubbles, the random flower petals suddenly raining down on the entire courtyard of the dorm-- that's a lot of kizuna.]

[ That just earns her a bit of a blank stare for a moment, not expecting all the kizuna all at once but it isn't offputting or anything. Not entirely, anyway. ]

Mm. No, I wasn't waiting long.

[ Infact he will come in without much preamble, and she may even note the coat he's wearing looks exactly like the one he'd been wearing from home. Pristine condition, even. ]

I... apologize for showing up without much warning.

[At least the kizuna is more contained once it's inside. The sparkles diminish, and there's only a few love bubbles floating about.]

Y-You don't have to apologize! I... should have reached out sooner.

[But of course she notices the coat -- and it's a nice way to delay the inevitable.]

...you got your coat back?

It's fine.

[ His tone isn't snappish but a bit more calm, almost understanding. It wasn't as if he wasn't busy either, what with his work taking up a lot of his time since he'd come back. ]

I did. [ One hand reached down to touch against one sleeve loosely. ] Should have been impossible given the circumstances. It's in better condition than it had last been in when I last wore it.

[ Infact it looked like it had within the first couple months of him owning it, which was quite odd. ]

[When he last wore it, when he fucking died--]

[Once in her room, she takes a moment to quickly roll the futons up and shove them in the closet -- was she still sleeping before he got here? Maybe. Honestly, it's a wonder she's even dressed.]

[But that means there's no space for sitting tensely on the floor facing him, since... well, the room is too small to be looking anywhere else.]

Th-That's good! I didn't think they could do something like that, but... I guess it makes sense, if they can just pull people out of time.

[ Naturally he's patient, waiting for her to do what she needed as to make room here for them both and getting comfortable when able to. ]

Precisely.

[ Akutagawa leveled her with a small look, getting the feeling something was slightly off. All while trying to pretend that he wasn't at all thinking about their last encounter in the hot springs. ]

...How has the Market been treating you, Higuchi?

[ He didn't get to see her that often, and when he did catch sight of her inbetween his own work? It was always fleeting. Were they making her do more work than he'd initially suspected? ]

[Suddenly the question becomes: which topic did she want to talk about the least?]

[Work was hard. But she hardly felt it was something she had a right to complain about. Rather-- she had nothing particularly good to report, and the last thing she wants is for Akutagawa to think she's failing at something that should be so simple. If she couldn't even stand on her own in this other-worldly version of the mafia, could she really deserve to be sitting across from him right now?]

[...not that the alternative is any easier to talk about.]

S-Sempai... you didn't come here to talk to me about work.

[ Akutagawa leveled her with a bit of a flat look before sighing. He must really be that transparent if she can see through him that easily. ]

Indeed. I had come to speak with you regarding the last time we... interacted with each other.

[ Hahaha. He isn't blushing. Nope. Surely not. Same with how the white tips of his hair isn't turning a soft shade of pink either. ]

[...pfft. A little laugh almost sneaks it's way past her lips at that phrasing -- oh, they interacted all right. She should really not be laughing though!!]

[Even as Akutagawa's hair starts turning pink right in front of her!!]

[...]

[She's so mad she doesn't have a camera though.]

Y-Y... yes! About... that.

[Deep breaths.]

Uhm... I-I think it... g-goes without saying that I wasn't entirely myself? But that's-- that's not an excuse, and I-I'm sorry for overstepping my boundaries like that... sir.

There's no need to apologize. It... wasn't as if it was an unpleasant experience.

[ He's looking away now. God he can't completely look at her, all while remembering the distant talk he had with Chuuya about being more direct with women instead of the way he normally was. ]

I mean to say that I found it... quite enjoyable and... [ Damn it. Words are hard. ] I do not regret it even now.

[...]

[Did she just hear that right?]

[He... enjoyed it? With her? Really??]

[Well okay, that's not exactly a surprise.]

[She was there. She saw what happened.]

[But if he doesn't regret it then... will he want to do it again?]

[OKAY DEEP BREATHS she needs to calm down before Kizuna starts doing something stupid.]

[...]

[Yeah, those effects from before? They just increased tenfold. The floor of the room is being quietly peppered with small cherry blossom petals, that vanish a few seconds after landing.]

Ah... ah! Good! That it was good, I mean! A-And that you don't regret it, because I-- I-I don't regret it either!

[ Even while not really looking at her, it was hard to miss the massive outpouring of kizuna that suddenly occurred right at that point. His own were much more mild in comparison, what with the tips of his hair a nice pink and the brief appearance of tiny, cute rashomon heads popping up like little bubbles and colored soft pastel shades. ]

We're on the same page. [ Akutagawa cleared his throat. ] This means that you need not apologize if something such as that happens again in our time here.

[ It's something he's accepted. She may even have already long since noticed that while his sharp edges still remained, they were a little softer than they'd been some time ago. ]

[AGAIN]

[AGAIN]

[AGAIN]

[AGAIN]

Er... s-sempai? I... don't know if we're actually on the same page or not.

[Does she have the guts to outright confess to him here and now??? ...no. Definitely not. But she can work around it.]

What... are we, exactly?

[ Okay. So that was something he didn't want to think about, and something on his face instantly said he wanted to just get up and not talk about this but also was aware it was necessary. It wasn't as if he could get away from her while here. ]

What... are we?

[ Sorry. He had to repeat it back as he tried to put actual thought into it. First instinct was to say 'we are simply co-workers in the Port Mafia' but that didn't sound right. Not after everything and how this impertinent blush on his cheeks wouldn't leave him be after discussing what they had done at the hot springs. ]

Not.... simply coworkers. I enjoy... your company and I find the idea of being with you again an... attractive one. [ Higuchi please give him credit he's doing his best to be more direct and find the right words. Please don't get upset with him. ] I... would like to spend more time with you. Does... that make it clearer?

[That blush]

[Those words]

[There's no way. Is he... saying he likes her? And here she wouldn't have even expected him to admit they're friends let alone, potentially, something just a bit more than that.]

[Oh, but surely his feelings can't possibly be the same as her own, right? They may be co-workers, have worked together and saved one another's lives out on the streets, but they really haven't talked much. How well could they even say they know one another? Surely, Higuchi is certain of her own feelings, but Akutagawa? No, maybe not.]

[Or maybe just not yet.]

[This could be her one chance. And she has to take it.]

[She struggles with a reply for a few seconds, looking at a loss for words. And then--]

A-A date!!

[Ah. She got one word out least.]

I-I... want to spend more time with you, too! So, uhm... wh-what if we went on a date together? Just-- just the two of us.

[ To say he was almost making up for the time he'd spent in the Port Mafia with her before was almost an understatement. Self-realization could do a hell of a lot for a person when it came to acknowledging things and allowing oneself to actually have something like real feelings.

This was such an example of that. Not that he had an actual word for it yet.

When she finally spoke, Akutagawa blinked a couple of times in mute surprise. He may be dense about a LOT of things where this stuff was concerned, but it wasn't like he was unaware of what a 'date' was. Couples did that, right? Perhaps if they went on one, it would fully confirm what it was he was feeling for her in it's entirety. ]

I... would not mind. Did... you have a preferred time and place for it?

[ Honestly he had no idea how this worked. ]

[He said yes?]

[HE SAID YES????]

[DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI DATE WITH SEMPAI!!!!!!!!!!!!]

[Closed] Oh, let the bullets fly, oh, let them rain

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

1/a journey

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

/DONE

no subject

no subject

no subject

1/2

no subject

no subject

1/4

no subject

I'm so sorry

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

/wraps this with Higu being cute